Quality Air

Rising price of fuel

chuck — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 20:14:04 +0000

As I write this the price of oil is going up. Todays national news story is the rising price of oil and gas at the pump. Fortunately for Western North Carolina residents with oil furnaces, we have had a mild winter. Chances are good, if history is an indication, oil will be higher next winter and our weather pattern will return to its normal pattern.
Now is the time to plan for that! Regular preventive maintenance will improve the efficiency of your furnace. If you are one of the lucky folks that live near or on a natural gas line you should consider replacing your 80% efficient furnace with a 90% efficient or above. This saves in two ways,
1. Natural gas costs significantly less than oil.
2. The efficiency goes up.
If your furnace is 80% efficient, that means that 80 cents of every dollar your spend goes into heating your home and 20 cents goes up the chimney as waste. Natural gas is considerably cleaner and has a lower impact on the environment.
Consider putting money away each month so you can easily take care of that change-out in the early fall.
To find out if Natural gas is available to your home call Quality Air today and ask for your FREE engineering analysis.

What kind of Humidifier should I install

chuck — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 20:56:26 +0000

There are what seems like millions of Humidifiers and manufacturers out there of which work slightly different. Lets look at what is out there so you can make an informed decision.
At Quality Air we want to make the humidifier installiation as easy as possible.
STEAM HUMIDIFIERS- Steam humidifiers are a little more expensive than other types but as always “you get what you pay for” The steam humidifier will actually work even if you dont have a need for heat. They will activate the blower every time they sense a drop in humidity to humidify your home to the proper setting.They will also have a quicker recovery time.

FLOW-THROUGH HUMIDIFIERS-Flow through humidifiers use a pad that has water flowing from the top of it down and flushes the remaining water to a drain. The pad should be replaced every year or even more often, depending on how hard your water is.

DRUM HUMIDIFIERS- Drum humidifiers use a round shaped frame with a sponge on it that rotates, keeping it partly submerged in water. The sponge should be replaced every year and maybe more often depending on how hard your water is in your home.

Humidifier Maintenance
It is important to keep your humidifier maintained through out the year. Quality Air can perform the humidifier inspection at the same time as the equipment inspection. There are some things that you can do between the two inspections a year that we do.
1. Every month, visually look at the humidifier to see if any water is dripping from the humidifier or any of it’s components.
2.Replace the pad/filter at least once a year.
3.Clean your humidifier at the end of the season to prevent damage.

Do I need a humidifier ?

chuck — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 21:30:27 +0000

In Asheville NC when it turns cold the heaters come on the indoor air becomes drier making you more vulnerable to allergens and the cold virus. Sometimes your home will even pop and creak, this is a sign of low humidity. Quality Air has the remedy and it is to install a humidifier. These useful systems help to maintain the moisture levels within your home. Humidifiers not only help with your overall health but can reduce utility bills by allowing you to turn the temperature down. The humidifier works with your heating system to keep you comfortable during those long winters.

Boilers and Furnaces in Asheville

chuck — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 16:05:06 +0000

Most homes that Quality Air services in Asheville North Carolina are heated with either furnaces or boilers. The minimum annual fuel utilization efficiency “A.F.U.E.” rating for a non-condensing fossil-fueled furnace is 78%. The minimum for a fossil-fueled boiler is 80% and the minimum for a fossil-fueled steam boiler is 75%. AFUE doesnt include the heat losses of the duct system or piping, which can be as much as 35% of the energy for output of the furnace when ducts or piping is located in a non-conditioned area such as an attic or vented crawl space.
The AFUE rating for a condensing unit can be much higher (by more than 10 percentage points) than a non-condensing furnace. Although condensing units, cost more than non-condensing units, the condensing furnace can save you money in fuel costs over the 15-20 year life of the unit, and is a particularly wise investment.

Load Calculation – it’s State code

chuck — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 14:57:59 +0000

When it comes to properly sizing the heating and cooling system for your home, many contractors use the customers current size or use an old rule of thumb. This is not only unethical, it is against the North Carolina state code. So, why does it make a difference? The biggest reason is to make sure that the home requirements have not changed. Quality Air looks for things like, new windows or if more insulation has been added as these things greatly affect your homes needs. The problem with improperly sized equipment is that the homeowner does not get the true energy efficiency of the new system and it can shorten the life span of the new equipment.

When should I have my furnace serviced ?

chuck — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 12:37:25 +0000

The time of year has no bearing on your heating systems performance. The most important thing is consistency. You can have your system serviced by Quality Air in Asheville North Carolina winter, spring, summer or fall.

How often should I change my air filter?

admin — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 13:16:50 +0000

It all depends on where you live in Asheville North Carlolina, What the air pollution levels are in the area you live and what kind of pollutants you use inside your home.

Quality Air suggests that you should at least inspect your filter every 30 days and change it if necessary. If it is clean, inspect it every 45 days and the filter should be changed at least every year.

A filter change is very inexpensive but, it is the most inportant thing you can do to avoid problems later. If you let it go, the blower motor works harder, shortens its life and your evaporator coil could become your filter, blocking airflow and causing it to start icing up. This could cost hundreds of dollars to fix the problem that could have been averted by changing the air filter.

If you smoke in the house, have inside pets, or a large amount of traffic in the house, check the filter once a week. The outside environment should be considered, since dust and high pollution areas do affect the filter as well.

Hello world!

admin — Sat, 20 Nov 2010 12:00:32 +0000

Quality Air launches a new website to better serve our clients.